Girls Like Girls
by basscymru
Summary: Everyone knew Dorcas was gay, ever since she had wondered aloud in Charms how on earth she was meant to keep her wand straight when she had trouble being straigh, but it was her dearest wish that her crush on Marlene was kept a little more secret.


"I'm off to bed. Alright if I sleep in your dorm, guys?"

It was three o'clock in the morning and Dorcas Meadowes was bored out of her skull. She had been invited to a sixth year Gryffindor gathering, celebrating the end of exams, despite being a Ravenclaw. The evening had been fun to begin, with enough gossip to keep everyone interested and enough food to keep everyone awake. Gradually, after Remus, Mary, Peter and Sirius gave in to temptation and went to bed, the conversation wore off. Only James, Lily and Marlene were left now to keep Dorcas company, and she could hardly keep her eyes open, let alone make her way to the Ravenclaw dormitory.

Dorcas climbed the stairs to winding stairs to the Gryffindor dormitories, clutching the banister to avoid tripping over her own feet, and tiptoed in, careful not to wake Mary. She climbed in to Marlene's bed and pressed her face against the pillow.

Dorcas had a choice of three beds – Lily's, Marlene's, or Mary's – yet there had never been any doubt in her mind as to which bed she would choose.

Everyone knew Dorcas was gay, ever since she had wondered aloud in Charms how on earth she was meant to keep her wand straight when she had trouble _being_ straight. Very few people seemed to have a problem with it, even if whispers had followed Dorcas like an echo for days afterwards.

It was Dorcas' dearest wish that her crush on Marlene was kept a little more secret than her sexual identity. She had come to terms with it well over a year beforehand, and had learned to suffer through Marlene's varying relationships with varying boys in silence. It couldn't have been clearer that Marlene was straight, and Dorcas could accept it.

That wasn't to say that she could resist climbing into Marlene's bed whenever the opportunity arose, could resist the smell of soap and lipstick. Dorcas felt content as her eyes slid shut and she began to drift into unconsciousness.

Through a haze of sleep Dorcas could hear soft footsteps padding into the room. The bed shifted under the weight of another body. Dorcas smiled.

Marlene lay on her side, facing the nape of Dorcas' neck. Had she moved forwards a few inches, she could have wrapped her body around her friend's back. Dorcas willed herself not to think about it.

"Dorcas? Are you awake?"

Dorcas mumbled into the pillow in reply.

"You're still gay, aren't you?"

She snorted. "I'll say." As she began to slip into sleep again, she thought she could hear a very timid, "OK."

It was a Tuesday evening. Lily was patrolling with James ("Or _head_ girl work, am I right, Dorcas?") and Mary had found herself in detention after failing to complete her transfiguration homework for the third time.

Dorcas and Marlene had successfully invaded the Gryffindor girls' dormitory, their ammunition being chocolate, magazines and a complete disregard for any homework their cruel teachers may have set despite their exams being over. Dorcas was reclining on Lily's bed, painting her nails carefully while Marlene sat on the floor, and nibbled her way through the sweets. Dorcas knew something wasn't sitting right with Marlene, but also knew better than to push her.

"Dorcas," Marlene started, pushing away the chocolate and wrapping her arms around her legs. "Do you think I get off with Sirius Black?"

Dorcas sat up, her nails still wet. "What?"

"I know that's what the whole school says."

"Marlene," Dorcas sighed. "I think you'd have told me if you were shagging Sirius. There's no way you could keep that kind of secret." Although Dorcas had expected Marlene to be appeased by this, her body language remained tense and wired. Blowing on her nails hurriedly, Dorcas climbed off the bed and sat beside Marlene. She refrained from putting her arm around her friend but hoped that her close proximity would be enough.

"Do you think I'm straight?" Marlene asked in a very small voice.

"I-" Dorcas began, startled. Of course she thought Marlene was straight. "Well, I-" Why shouldn't she be? "I suppose I'd never really thought about it before," she lied. "Are you?" she asked after a pause.

"I don't know. I think so. Maybe." Marlene sighed and rubbed a hand over her face. "I don't know." She suddenly twisted around to face Dorcas, bumping their knees together. "Would you ever date me, Dorcas?"

"Excuse me?" Dorcas sputtered.

"Would you ever consider dating me?"

"Like – you mean –" She took a deep breath. "Oh."

"Theoretically," Marlene continued, her eyes shifting from Dorcas' to stare at the floor. "You know."

"Look, Marlene, I couldn't be your – your experiment, or whatever."

Marlene looked back up. "What?"

Dorcas bit her lip. It was usually her policy to be as straightforward as possible, although there were exceptions to every rule as far as Marlene was concerned. For a moment, she fought the urge to come clean and tell her friend everything.

"I've liked you for the longest time and I just don't think I could let you experiment and then have done with me," Dorcas blurted out, reddening.

"You like me?"

Dorcas swallowed thickly, but nodded. She closed her eyes as the enormity of the situation hit her – she'd kept quiet about it for _so long_ – but opened them when warm lips were pressed against hers. The smell of Marlene overwhelmed her; the smell of sweets and coffee and her specific brand of foundation. She sucked in a sharp breath, wondering if this is what some romantics might call a dream come true, before lifting her hands to the back of Marlene's neck and leaning in closer.

The following day – and the days following that – Marlene and Dorcas' secret kisses became like an inside joke to them, full of shared smiles and hours spent alone in the dormitory. Dorcas couldn't remember a time she felt so content.

She found Marlene lying on the grass in front of the lake with an arm thrown over her eyes, a Muggle book hanging from her hand. Nobody was around – most of the school was still in class, staring longingly out of the window onto the beautiful day - but Marlene was fortunate enough to have a free period, and Dorcas was fortunate enough to have caused an accident in the Potions classroom, avoiding injury and detention herself (Lily did not escape quite so unharmed).

She flopped onto the ground beside Marlene, who lifted her arm slightly to squint at Dorcas. "Hi," she smiled dopily.

"Hi," Dorcas replied, taking the book from Marlene and placing it on the grass, before resting her head on Marlene's chest.

"How did you get out of class?" Marlene asked, playing with strands of Dorcas' hair idly.

"I set fire to Lily."

"I feel like I should be concerned about this, but all I really want to do is make a joke about fire and her hair." Marlene could feel Dorcas' giggles vibrate through her body.

"Only a couple of days before we go home, now," Dorcas said after a few moment's silence. Marlene sighed in agreement.

"We'll meet up, though, won't we?" Marlene asked.

"All the time," Dorcas reassured her. "And talk on the tele-thingy. Mum promised I could get one."

Marlene smiled and picked up Dorcas' hand, lacing their fingers together. "We'll have the best summer ever."

"You can introduce me to Muggle London."

"And we can practice illicit spells in your house, where the ministry probably won't notice-"

"And we can send insulting owls to Lily and Mary-"

"And we can just _be_ , you know?"

Dorcas nodded in agreement. "This will be the best summer ever," she promised, as placed a gentle kiss on each of her finger tips. Dorcas buried her face further into Marlene's neck. "I'm glad you decided you were queer," she went on, her words muffled by Marlene's skin. Marlene grinned.

"Me too."

A/N: The first scene is inspired by the beginning of Lily Allen's Who'd Have Known, in case anyone thought it was creepy (which it probably was).


End file.
